Single sole shoe and process of making the same



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SINGLE SOLE SHOE AND PROCESS OF MAKING THE SAME July 21, 1936.

Filed Feb. 16 19:55

Patented July 21, 1936 PATENT OFFHIE SINGLE SOLE SHOE AND PROCESS OF MAKING THE William M. Page, Marblehead, Mass., assignor to Danvers Shoe Company, Newburyport, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application February 16, 1935, Serial No. 6,869

10 Claims.

This invention consists in an improved process of manufacturing single sole, smooth-bottom Y shoes. It is characterized by three essential steps, viz, (1) stiffening the margin of the lasted shoe into the shape of the last, (2) trimming the lasted margin to present an opening of predetermined size and shape in the shoe bottom, and (3) filling the opening in the shoe bottom with a preformed filler. The step of stiffening the lasted upper is further characterized by fusing or uniting the upper and lining materials into a single stiff flange, and preferably the filler for the opening presented by the trimmed flange comprises a shouldered portion of the sole. The invention includes within its scope the novel shoe herein shown as produced by the process of my invention.

Important fields of use for my invention are in the manufacture of slippers and of womens shoes. For purposes of illustration the invention will be herein discussed particularly in its application to the manufacture of slippers. Desirable features in both slipper and womens shoes are light weight, a flexible sole, strength and reliability of structure resulting in good wearing qualities. It is important also that the inside of the slipper next to the foot of the wearer should present a smooth surface and that in external lines the slipper should present the close edge effect between the. sole and upper. These desirable features I secure by shaping and stiffening the lasted margin of the upper so that it maintains the shape imparted to it by the last. 35 The stiffened margin is thereafter effective to hold the upper upon the last during certain steps of the process and may be incorporated in the slipper in such a mannerv as to form a smooth surface beneath the foot of the wearer. To this end the process of my invention is characterized by the step of lasting the upper while the margin thereof has been rendered pliable by treating with a suitable adhesive, such as pyroxylin cement. This not only tends to facilitate the last- 45 ing operation, by'temporarily tempering or reducing the natural resiliency of the upper leather but sets to form a stiff, self-sustaining frame about the margin of the upper.

an invention is further characterizedby the 50 employment of an outsole provided with a channel having a face sloping inwardly from the edge of the sole and designed to receive the stiffened edge of the lasted upper already referred to. A channel of this type tends to prevent the escape 56 of adhesive material in the sole laying operation and provides a stiff sole edge so that the lasted margin of the upper may be brought into close proximity therewith and the slipper given a close edge effect.

These and other features of the invention will 5 be best understood and appreciated from the following description of one manner in which the process of my invention may be carried out, as illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a view in perspective of the upper blank showing the upper and lining portions partially separated for cementing;

Fig. 2 is a view in perspective of the upper' upon the last at the conclusion of the lasting 15 operation;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig.2 but showing the upper in trimmed condition and the heel pocket in place upon the last;

Fig. 4 is a view in perspective of a heel, seen 20 from the heel seat face;

Fig. 5 is a view in perspective of the sole with a portion in section;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary sectional view of the completed slipper; and

Fig. 7 is a view in perspective of the completed slipper in inverted position.

The slipper herein illustrated as one product of the process of my invention may be made with a seamless vamp extending rearwardly to the heel seat of the slipper and comprising an upper I0 of leather and an inner lining portion H, which may also be of thin leather or, if preferred, ofa textile material. The vamp and lining blanks are first cut out and then superposed preparatory to lasting upon a last Hi. Just prior to the lasting operation the blank I!) is temporarily folded back and a band l2 of pyroxolin cement or other suitable adhesive is applied to the inner face of the lining. Then, while the cement remains in liquid or semi-liquid condition, the lined v'amp is secured properly in place on the last by staples driven through its rearmost corners into a fibre shank piece l3, which has previously been temporarily tacked to the last bottom. In this operation the vamp is centered upon the last and its margin is drawn the proper distance over the last bottom. The sta ples H are preferably clenched upon an iron plate in the last bottom and may remain permanently in the finished slipper. The vamp thus positioned is then immediately pulled over, either by machine or by hand, side lasted by tacks l6 and toe lasted. The complete lasting operation upon the vamp is carried out before the cement band i2 sets and while the margin of the lined vamp remains moist and pliable, so that the lasting operation is facilitated to some extent. The lasting tacks ii are not fully driven but remain upstanding so that they may be easilyremoved at the proper time in the shoemaking process. In Fig. 2 the slipper is represented as in this stage of its manufacture, the lined vamp being smoothly lasted over the forepart of the last and secured thereon with an inwardly-extending margin of vamp and lining material, which it may be supposed is still moist and flexible.

At the conclusion of the lasting operation the vamp is allowed to remain upon the last until the cement has fully set, which mayrequire about one hour As the cement dries, the vamp may be shrunk more .tightly and smoothly upon the last, and when the cement has fully set the in- -turned margin of the upper, which is substantially coextensive with the cement band i2, is

stiffened and solidified by the cement into a selfsustaining frame which will from now on preserve the. shape imparted to it by the last and is made up of the material of the vamp and its lining united'or fused by the cement into a solid and stiff ply capable of retaining its shape when removed from the last and capable also of retaining the vamp in position upon the last after I or corrugations in its material is also removed by a trimming operation so that the lasted margin lies fiat and smooth upon the last bottom, as shown in Fig. 3. At this stage of manufacture it will be understood that the vamp is held in position upon the last only by reason of the stiff peripheral frame constituted by the cemented margin of the vamp and the staples ii.

The next step in the manufacture of the slipper consists in securing the heel pocket I! in place upon the heel end of the last and in carrying out a heel lasting operation thereon, wherein the inturned margin of the heel pocket is permanently secured to the rear end of the shank piece-l3 by lasting tacks l8 which are fully driven and clenched against the iron last bottom.

The slipper isjncw ready for its sole, which has been prepared for attachment by suitable stock fitting operations. As shown in Fig. 5, the sole is trimmed or died to fit the bottom of 'the lasted slipper and provided with a peripheral channel 2| in its inner face. Preferably and as herein shown, this channel 2| leaves the outer edge of the sole intact, without any reduction in thickness, and extends inwardly at an inclination ,to a width corresponding to that of the trimmed edge of the vamp. The channel 2|, therefore, is deepest at its inner edge where it is bounded by a vertical shoulder corresponding substantially in height to the thickness of the lasted and cemented vamp and lining material. The channel being cut in the flesh side of the sole removes the looserfibres therefrom and exposes a firm surface for attachment to the upper.

If desired, I 'may use a full length sole but, as herein shown, the sole 20 is cut off on a line some what within the heel seat of the slipper and provided with reentrant notches 22 at each of its rear corners which shape its rear edge to flt into a slot 24 formed-in the breast edge of the heel 23. The use of a short sole is of considerable advantage from the standpoint of economy since it reduces the area of the sole by substantially the amount of leather which would otherwise be required in '5 the heel seat and permits the substitution of inexpensive heel material for relatively expensive sole leather. The heel 23 shown in Fig. 4 is trimmed and finished to size and completes the heel end of the slipper bottom when 'nailed in place after the attachment of the sole 20.

Preparatory to attaching the sole 20, or a corresponding full length sole, the channel 2| is coated with suitable adhesive, preferably pyroxylin cement. This may be done as a stock fitting 15 operation and if so, just prior to the sole laying operation, the more or less hardened cement is moistened by a suitable solvent. The sole is then placed upon the last bottom with the in-turned margin" of the upper fitting snugly into the chan- 2o nel 2| and the sole is then subjected to heavy pressure for an interval suflicient to permit setting of the cement. The shape of the channel 2| plays an important part in this operation. In

the first place, on account of its inwardly in- 25 clined face it is effective in tending to prevent squeezing out of the solvent or of the softened cement toward the margin of the sole. This not only makes effective the full charge of cement for attaching but keeps the edge of the slipper clean and avoids the necessity for removing any surplus adhesive material. Then, as already explained, the removal of the surface fibres from the flesh side of the sole brings a firm portion of the sole into attaching contact with the lasted margin of the upper and thus obviates all danger of splitting or loosening of surface layers of the sole. In the next place, the shape of the channel 2| is such as to smoothly receive the lasted margin of the upper so that'a substantially flush surface is formed inside the shoe, that is, the center portion of the sole. exactly fills the space defined by the trimmed 'margin of the lasted upper and a flat continuous surface is thus formed under the foot of thewearer. Finally, the relatively thick edge of the sole formed by the channel permits the sole laying pressure to bring the lasted edge of the upper into close proximity to the margin of the sole, thus insuring the close edge effect which is so much prized in good shoe-. making. After the sole laying operation and the setting of the'attaching cement, further time is allowed for completely drying out the slipper and, if desired, athin stock lining 25 may be then inserted to cover the shank piece l3 and the sur-. face in the forepart of the slipper formed by the sole 20 and the lasted margin of the upper.

With the foregoing description in mind, I will again emphasize the ease and convenience of the various shoemaking operations enumerated and it will be apparent that for none of these is any unusual skill on the part of the shoemaker required. Moreover, the product is, a slipper of strong structure and good. wearing qualities andat the same time of light weight and great fiexc5 ibility, resulting in comfort to the wearer. With 'all these advantages, moreover, the slipper prevarious styles and types of shoe which may be advantageously manufactured by the process of 15 aosasea my invention. I have referred to pyroxylin cement as the preferred adhesive material for stifiening the lasted margin of the upper and for attaching the sole but fish glue or other adequate adhesive material may be employed within the scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A single sole slipper having the margin of its upper and lining united in a stifi, self-sustained, in-turned flange, and a sole having a downwardly and inwardly inclined marginal channel receiving said flange in an oblique position forming a flush surface with the upper surface of the sole and being united to the flange only by a continuous band of cement substantially coextensive with the area of the flange.

2. A single sole slipper having the lasted margin of its upper and lining united and treated with a stiffening material to form a self-sustaining frame constituting the peripheral portion of the slipper bottom, and a sole having a wide downwardly and inwardly inclined channel in its upper surface receiving in a downwardly and inwardly inclined position the frame thus presented by the upper and being secured thereto by cement only.

3. The process of making single sole slippers, comprising treating the margin of an upper and a lining with a pyroxylin compound, lasting the upper and lining in superposed relation over the bottom of a last, tacking them temporarily thereto, drying the lasted material to form a stiff, selfsustaining marginserving to hold, the upper in position upon the last, removing the lasting tacks,

trimming the edge of the lasted material on a line spaced a predetermined distance from the periphery of the last, and then cementing to the stiffened margin a sole channelled to form a shoulder therein, said shoulder abutting the trimmed edge of the upper.

4.. The process of making a cemented shoe, which comprises lasting an upper and stiffening the lasted margin thereof, supplying a sole. hav

ing an open channel progressively increasing in depth from the edge of the sole, coating the bottom face of the channel with cement, and then pressing the stiffened margin into said channel while loss of liquid material therefrom in the direction of the sole edge is substantially prevented by the shape of the channel.

5. The process of making a cemented shoe, which comprises lasting an upper and stiffening the lasted margin thereof, supplying a sole having an open-channel having an inwardly inclined face terminated inwardly'by a shoulder and outwardly by the full thickness of the sole edge, applying a pyroxylin cement to the channel, and pressing the stifiened margin into said channel while the escape of cement therefrom in the direction of the sole edge is substantially prevented by the unreduced sole edge.

6. The process of making cemented shoes,

which comprises forming astifi iii-turned lasted margin on upper, supplying a sole having a channel with an inwardly sloping face, and uniting the channel face and stifiened mar by liquid adhesive which is substantially prevented from escaping beyond the lasted margin of the upper in the direction of the sole edge by the inclination of the channel face.

7 A cemented shoe having a sole, and a leather vamp and lining cemented together in a peripheral zone and presenting a wide stiifened inturned margin, trimmed at its inner edge and extending outwardly substantially to the marginal edge of the sole, said sole being channeled and receiving said stiffened margin in an inwardly inclined position and being cemented continuous- 1y thereto. I

8. The process of making flexible single-sole slippers, characterized by the steps of stapling the rear marginal portions of a lined vamp in position upon a shank piece positioned on a last bottom, applying cement to the free margins of the vamp and lining, lasting the cemented margins while in a cement-moistened condition over the last bottom, drying the lasted vamp to stiffen the overlasted margins, supplying a sole having a marginal edge of full thickness and a downwardly and inwardly inclined channel lying wholly within its marginal edge, and uniting the stiffenedmargins of the vamp to the inclined face of the channel.

9. The process of making smooth bottom single sole shoes, comprising incorporating a band or cement in the margin of a lined upper, lasting the upper and lining in superposed relation over the bottom of a bare last while the cement remains moist, fastening the overlasted margin temporarily in position upon the last bottom, drying the lasted material to form a stifi, self-sustaining margin serving to hold the upper in position upon the last, freeing the overlasted material from the last, trimming the edge of the lasted material to form an opening of predetermined size and shape in the shoe bottom, and then cementing to the stifiened and trimmed margin a sole having a projecting shoulder therein shaped to fit against the trimmed edge of the upper about said opening.

10. The process of making smooth-bottom, single sole shoes, comprising incorporating a band of cement in the margin of a lined upper, lasting the upper and lining in superposed relation over the bottom of a bare last while the cement remains soft, holding the overlasted margin temporarily in position upon the last bottom, drying the lasted material to form a stifl, self-sustaining'marginal flange serving to retain the upper in position upon the last, tng the edge of the lasted material to form an opening of predetermined size and pe in the shoe bottom, and then fastening to the stiffened.v and trimmed margin a sole having a projecting shoulder therein shaped to fit against the trimmed edge of the upper about said opening.

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